In 1520, Martin Luther publicly burned the papal edict demanding that he recant or face excommunication.
In 1787, Thomas H. Gallaudet, a pioneer of educating the deaf, was born in Philadelphia.
In 1817, Mississippi was admitted as the 20th state.
In 1869, women were granted the right to vote in the Wyoming Territory. [Next political thing Wyoming gave us was Dick Cheney. — Ed.]
In 1898, a treaty was signed in Paris officially ending the Spanish-American War.
In 1901, the first Nobel Prizes were awarded in Stockholm, Sweden, in the fields of physics, chemistry, medicine, literature, and peace.
In 1906, President Theodore Roosevelt became the first American to be awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, for helping mediate an end to the Russo-Japanese War.
In 1931, Jane Addams became the first American woman to be awarded the Nobel Peace Prize (the co-recipient that year was Nicholas Murray Butler).
In 1946, Baseball Hall of Famer Walter Johnson died at age 59. [That's Walter "The Big Train" Johnson, AP. — Ed.]
In 1948, the U.N. General Assembly adopted its Universal Declaration on Human Rights. [Everything's been just peachy since, too. — Ed.]
In 1950, Dr. Ralph J. Bunche was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, the first black American to receive the award.
In 1958, the first domestic passenger jet flight took place in the United States as a National Airlines Boeing 707 flew 111 passengers from New York City to Miami.
In 1964, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. received the Nobel Peace Prize.
In 1984, South African Bishop Desmond Tutu received the Nobel Peace Prize.
In 1987, violin virtuoso Jascha Heifetz died in Los Angeles at age 86.
In 1994, Yasser Arafat, Shimon Peres and Yitzhak Rabin received the Nobel Peace Prize.
Ten years ago: The Supreme Court narrowed double-jeopardy protections for people who face both civil fines and criminal prosecution for the same conduct, ruling that three Oklahoma men could be prosecuted in a bank failure case even though they'd already paid civil fines for their actions.
In 1998, six astronauts swung open the doors to the new international space station, becoming the first guests aboard the 250-mile-high outpost.
In 1999, computer scientist Wen Ho Lee was arrested and charged with removing secrets from secure computers at the Los Alamos weapons lab.Five years ago: President Bush selected William H. Donaldson, an investment banker with ties to Wall Street and the Bush family, as chairman of the besieged Securities and Exchange Commission. Former President Jimmy Carter accepted the Nobel Peace Prize for his diplomacy in the Middle East in the '70s.
In 2003, Iranian democracy activist Shirin Ebadi, the first Muslim woman to win the Nobel Peace Prize, accepted the award in Oslo, Norway.
In 2004, a U.S. passenger jet landed in Vietnam, the first one to do so since the Vietnam War ended nearly three decades earlier.
In 2005, former Senator Eugene McCarthy died in Washington, D.C., at age 89.
One year ago: Former Chilean dictator General Augusto Pinochet died at age 91. [What took you so long, murderer? — Ed.] Iraqi President Jalal Talabani criticized a bipartisan US report on American war policies, saying it contained some "very dangerous" recommendations that would undermine the sovereignty of Iraq. [What sovereignty would that be? — Ed.]
Today's Birthdays: Actor Harold Gould is 84. Actor Tommy Kirk is 66. Actress Fionnula Flanagan is 66. Pop singer Chad Stuart (Chad and Jeremy) is 66. Actress-singer Gloria Loring is 61. Pop-funk musician Walter "Clyde" Orange (The Commodores) is 61. Rhythm-and-blues singer Ralph Tavares is 59. Rhythm-and-blues singer Jessica Cleaves (Friends of Distinction) is 59. [Double shot of R&B singers. — Ed.] Country singer Johnny Rodriguez is 56. Actress Susan Dey is 55. Actor Michael Clarke Duncan is 50. Jazz musician Paul Hardcastle is 50. Actor-director Kenneth Branagh is 47. Actress Nia Peeples is 46. TV chef Bobby Flay is 43. Rock singer-musician J Mascis is 42. Rock musician Meg White (The White Stripes) is 33. Violinist Sarah Chang is 27. Actress Raven is 22.
Other Birthdays:
Emily Dickinson, poetess (1830)
Melvil Dewey, library pioneer (1851)
Chet Huntley, news broadcaster (1911) ["Good night, David." — Ed.]
Dorothy Lamour, actor (1914)
Douglas Kenney, humorist (1947)
From The World of Show Bidness:
In 1959, the four male members of The Platters were acquitted of charges of aiding and abetting prostitution. They had been arrested four months earlier. [Keep those Negroes who are corrupting our pure white youth down. See also Chuck Berry. — Ed.]
In 1962, "Lawrence of Arabia" had its royal premiere in London. Peter O'Toole starred as English officer T.E. Lawrence.
In 1967, singer Otis Redding, four members of The Bar-Kays [& two others] were killed in the crash of their plane in Lake Monona, Wisconsin. Otis was 26. [Again, we quote another dead personage: "Poor Otis dead and gone/Left me here to sing his song/Pretty little girl with the red dress on/Poor Otis dead and gone." Not that Morrison lasted much longer. — Ed.]
Also in 1967, singer Steve Miller signed a precedent-setting contract with Capitol Records. He received a large advance on his band's first album and a sizable royalty rate.In 1971, Frank Zappa broke a leg and ankle and fractured his skull when he was pushed from a London stage by the jealous boyfriend of a Zappa fan. Zappa spent months in a wheelchair recovering. [When we passed through town on spring break in 1972, he was still in the chair. We called him & asked how he was doing & he said, "Alive, but not kicking." He was never quite the same person after the assault. — Ed.]
In 1972, singer Roberta Flack and two members of her backup band were injured in a car accident while driving into New York.In 1995, rapper Darren Robinson of the Fat Boys died while working on a comeback album. He was 28.
In 1996, country singer Faron Young ["The Singing Sheriff" — Ed.] died in a hospital in Nashville, a day after he shot himself in the head. He was 64.
In 1997, bassist Nikki Sixx and drummer Tommy Lee of Motley Crue were arrested for allegedly knocking over a security guard at a concert in Phoenix.
Also in 1997, bass singer Jacob Carey of The Flamingos died of a heart attack in his home in Lanham, Maryland. He was 74. The Flamingos were best known for their hit "I Only Have Eyes For You."
In 1999, bassist Rick Danko of The Band died in Woodstock, New York. He was 56.
In 2005, comedian Richard Pryor died of a heart attack at a hospital in Encino, California. He was 65.
In 2006, Tenor Roberto Alagna walked out of a performance of Verdi's "Aida" at Italy's famed La Scala opera house when the audience booed his rendition of the aria "Celeste Aida."
Editorial Note: St. Nick on a stick! Bad day in history for show biz types.
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